Intel teams up with Rockchip to get into low-cost Android tablets

Intel announced a strategic partnership with Rockchip, the top supplier of low-cost tablet processors in China. Under the deal, the companies will jointly develop an Intel-branded SoC platform based on an Atom processor bundled with Intel's SoFIA 3G baseband chip.

Intel Corporation today announced it has entered into a strategic agreement with Rockchip to expand the breadth of and accelerate the rate at which it brings its Intel® architecture and communications-based solutions to market for a range of entry-level Android* tablets worldwide.

Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will deliver an Intel-branded mobile SoC platform. The quad-core platform will be based on an Intel® Atom™ processor core integrated with Intel's 3G modem technology.

Expanding the offerings in Intel's SoFIA family of integrated mobile SoC platforms for entry and value Android mobile devices, the new quad-core SoFIA 3G part is expected to be available in the first half of 2015. It will be targeted primarily at entry and value tablets. The Intel SoFIA family was added to Intel's mobile product roadmap late last year and includes Intel's first integrated applications processor and communications platform.

As the tablet market continues to expand with greater choice of screen size, form factor and price, the strategic agreement with Rockchip also enables Intel to ramp new customers with a broader portfolio of products faster.

"The strategic agreement with Rockchip is an example of Intel's commitment to take pragmatic and different approaches to grow our presence in the global mobile market by more quickly delivering a broader portfolio of Intel architecture and communications technology solutions," said Brian Krzanich, Intel CEO. "We are excited to work with Rockchip. With today's announcement we've added yet another derivative to the Intel SoFIA family, and we expect to have them all in market before the middle of 2015. We are moving with velocity to grow Intel's offerings for the growing global tablet market."

The strategic agreement with Intel expands Rockchip's product portfolio with the addition of the performance and flexibility of the Intel architecture and leading communications solutions.

"We are always looking for innovative ways to differentiate our product portfolio, and the first-of-its-kind collaboration with Intel helps us do this," said Min Li, Rockchip CEO. "The combination of Intel's leading architecture and modem technology with our leading mobile design capability brings greater choice to the growing global market for mobile devices in the entry and value segments."

With today's announcement, the Intel SoFIA family is now made up of three different offerings, including the dual-core 3G version expected to ship in the fourth quarter of this year, the quad-core 3G version that is expected to ship in the first half of 2015, and the LTE version, also due in the first half of next year.

Pricing for the quad-core SoFIA 3G part will be disclosed at a later date, and like the broader Intel SoFIA family, it is expected to be price competitive. Under the agreement, both Intel and Rockchip will sell the new part to OEMs and ODMs, primarily into each company's existing customer base.